


habituation

by andnowforyaya



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Adoption, Comfort, Family Bonding, Fluff, Gen, Hybrids, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Might add a relationship back but kuntencas is really just familial, Platonic Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:14:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23691433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andnowforyaya/pseuds/andnowforyaya
Summary: Puppies were social by nature, and Xuxi wasn’t used to being alone. Ever.
Comments: 184
Kudos: 491





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [taeyongseo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/taeyongseo/gifts).



> happy birthday! here is just a little something for you that is also, admittedly, self-indulgent. thank you for being ever kind, thoughtful, and all around wonderful!
> 
> april 28 2020 update -- i've updated the first chapter after deciding to continue this fic! please take note, as things have changed.

After a long day working out of his home office hunched over his laptop at his desk, all Kun ever wanted to do when six o’clock came around was bust out of his apartment and go for a long, winding run at the park by the river. Then he’d spend the night soaking in the tub for about an hour before knocking himself out with dinner and a bottle of wine. 

But ever since he’d adopted Xuxi, his hybrid pup, his routine had changed in a couple ways. First, school for Xuxi started at 7:45 AM, so Kun needed to be up long before that to make sure Xuxi ate something hearty for breakfast, packed a snack, and was presentable enough to leave the apartment to meet his friends at the bus stop down the street. Second, as Xuxi came home around six o’clock after basketball practice and hanging out with friends, Kun’s evenings could no longer be spent soaking his tired body in the tub after a long run, but instead preparing and eating dinner, coaching Xuxi through his homework, and coaxing him to finish all his assignments before he was allowed to play video games with his friends from school and from the shelter.

Xuxi was good in pretty much all the ways Kun considered a regular teenager could be good -- he listened well, apologized for his mistakes, and cleaned up after himself. He was insightful and smart, but not always vocal about it. He was also huge -- already almost a head taller than Kun, and for every meal Kun ate, Xuxi ate double. Which wasn’t an issue at all, as Kun loved to cook.

The only thing that Kun really worried about with Xuxi was his habit of sleepwalking to Kun’s room in the middle of the night and sleeping in his bed with him. This went on for a couple of weeks before Kun had to sit Xuxi down during dinner and ask him about it.

Kun had noticed how Xuxi, once exploding with boundless energy, had started to grow quiet and listless, often napping on the couch when Kun’s work day was over, and Kun worried about him. Was he a bad owner? Had he done something wrong? He saw how Xuxi grew tired of the video games, how his appetite diminished, how their cuddle sessions lasted longer and longer because Xuxi craved _so much_ , and Kun realized, though the puppy never complained, that Xuxi was lonely. So he asked him about it, and Xuxi had tilted his ears back and down and nodded.

Puppies were social by nature, and Xuxi wasn’t used to being alone. Ever.

Xuxi needed company. Just like Kun, the hybrid wanted for a companion.

The wheels turned in Kun’s head. He wasn’t sure that he could handle two puppies’ energies in his apartment. A cat, though? That could work.

So he did some research during the day, and when the weekend arrived, he drove to the shelter in the next town over, bringing Xuxi along with him, because if he was going to adopt another hybrid, he needed to be sure they’d get along with his ginormous puppy. He wanted Xuxi to have a say in his new companion. When they arrived, Xuxi made a beeline for the entrance to the shelter, his fluffy, golden tail wagging in excitement.

“Don’t bowl anyone over!” Kun called out after him, chuckling at Xuxi’s zeal. Xuxi was already inside and had, no doubt, befriended every staff member and probably half of the hybrids up for adoption as well. Kun locked up his car and paused to take in the looming structure before him, an old boarding school that had been re-purposed as a housing and adoption center. He strode up to the front door.

Inside, there was a receptionist behind a large table beside the staircase, and groups and pairs of hybrids lounging in seating areas scattered around the first floor. Kun scanned the groups and found Xuxi’s blond head tucked between a pair of brunettes at a table near the back, where large windows looked out onto the field behind the building. 

The receptionist smiled as Kun neared. “Are you here with Xuxi?”

“Oh, he’s quick,” Kun said brightly. “Did he already introduce himself?”

“To me, and maybe twenty others.”

“I’m Qian Kun. I submitted an application this past week and made an appointment?"

“Right,” the receptionist, Yeri, nodded. “I’ll take you to see Dr. Lee. He’s expecting you.”

“Great! Is Xuxi…?”

“Xuxi’s fine here. He’s making friends, and we have staff on the floor in case anything happens or they’re needed. He’s in safe hands.”

“Okay, thanks.” Kun let out the breath he was holding, relieved the establishment seemed to live up to its reviews online. So many adoption centers were struggling with overpopulation and decreasing funds these days, that care and support were often the first things to go. By chance, Xuxi looked up then, seemingly sensing that Kun was looking for him, and made eye contact with him from across the room. Kun waved and gestured that he would be following the receptionist. Xuxi waved back and ducked his head down again, engrossed in whatever was happening with his new friends. 

“I’ve definitely become a parent of a teenager,” Kun laughed to Yeri as she came out from behind the desk. “He’s forgotten I exist.”

.

Dr. Lee was not what Kun had been expecting at all. The photos online had shown a distinguished, older man with silver hair and rectangular glasses in a suit and tie. This Dr. Lee was younger, perhaps around Kun’s age, though his hair was still silver. Instead of a suit and tie, he wore joggers and a t-shirt. The only thing that reflected his credentials was the metallic name tag clipped to his shirt. His hand was soft and un-weathered when Kun shook it.

“I’m Dr. Lee. Call me Taeyong,” Dr. Lee said. “Sorry, not what you were expecting?”

“To be honest, you look nothing like your picture online.” Kun sat in one of the chairs in front of Taeyong’s desk, which Taeyong perched himself on. 

“Ah, that picture’s old,” Taeyong said, waving his hand at the thought as though he were shooing a fly that was buzzing around his head. “That’s my dad. He retired last year. Sorry to disappoint!”

“Oh, I’m not disappointed.” Kun smiled, and Taeyong flushed but hid his rosy cheeks by turning to reach for a tablet behind him on his desk. They made some small talk about the weather and about Kun’s drive over, but Kun could tell the entire time that Taeyong was itching to get to the point. Kun decided to help him along during the next pause in their conversation and offered, “So, Doctor, have you had the chance to review my application?”

Taeyong hummed in thought. “You’re a new hybrid owner, aren’t you?” he asked, evading the question by asking his own. He finally handed the tablet over to Kun, who took it into his hands. On the screen was Kun’s application that he had submitted online about a week ago, his headshot in the corner. “How’s that going for you?”

“It’s great. Xuxi’s perfect. We get along really well,” Kun said, still smiling because he wasn’t sure what Taeyong was looking for in his answer. Was he going to tell him his application had been rejected? His heart was freaking out a little bit in his chest. He felt like he was in the principal’s office about to get scolded for cheating on a test. But he hadn’t cheated!

“And he’s a puppy hybrid, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“I noticed in your application you’re looking for a cat hybrid now?”

Kun blinked and nodded belatedly. “I am...I really love Xuxi but I don’t think my apartment can handle two puppies,” Kun said honestly. “I noted all this in the application.”

“Just bear with me,” Taeyong said, grinning a little mischievously. “It helps if I hear it. So, why a cat hybrid?”

“Well,” Kun started hesitantly, trying to remember exactly what he’d noted in application and then giving up because he realized he’d never be able to recite what he’d submitted, word for word. “Xuxi wants -- needs -- a companion. He’s very social and gets lonely very quickly and easily. I work from home, but even then I take a lot of calls and meetings from my home office, and I can’t always be with him. I want to be able to close the office door every once in a while because Xuxi and whoever we adopt are fine on their own for a little bit, if I’m being perfectly honest. Not that I don’t think two puppies could be fine on their own, just that, again, I don’t think my apartment could handle that. Xuxi needs a friend. I feel bad when I close the door for privacy. And I’ve got the means, so why not?”

“Adopting another hybrid isn’t just another mouth to feed,” Taeyong emphasized, and his words fell on Kun's ears and shoulders like a reprimand. “There’s emotional labor involved. A relationship you have to build and maintain.”

“I know that,” Kun bristled. “That’s a given!”

Taeyong smirked. “Just checking.” He paused, sobering. “A lot of people assume that cat hybrids are easier to take care of, and so they adopt thinking it’ll be a walk in the park, and when it isn’t, they abandon them or leave them in shelters, or worse. Our hybrids are also on the older side -- up to their late teens -- so I just want to make sure you know that if you adopt, you’re not just adopting a friend for Xuxi, but another hybrid under your care. Your responsibility.”

Kun held the tablet closer to his chest. “I know, and I’m ready for that. And so is Xuxi.”

Taeyong stared into his eyes, and Kun resolutely stared back, hoping to convey his sincerity and seriousness in his gaze. Whatever Taeyong saw, he must have approved of, because he sighed and gestured to the tablet after a moment. “Well, you can take a look at the profiles we’ve pulled for you, based on what you’ve submitted in your application. All the cat hybrids listed are ready for adoption, pending the habituation period goes smoothly. Go on, let me know if you have any questions.”

Kun hesitantly turned his attention to the tablet and swiped to the right, and a screen loaded filled with large headshots of the cat hybrids living at the shelter, their names in bold underneath their images. 9 profiles filled 3 pages. It felt strange swiping through the profiles, reading each one carefully and going back and forth between multiple, with Taeyong watching him at first, but soon enough Taeyong stood and walked around his desk to take a seat and began playing a game online, not paying very much attention to Kun at all. Kun could tell he was playing a game because of the frequency with which he pounded the spacebar. 

While perusing the profiles closely, Kun’s chest began to fill with disappointment. Kun wasn’t someone who made snap judgments of people, but none of the profiles really stood out to him. And he was sure that Xuxi would be blunt about calling each of the cat hybrids listed boring or stuck up. He looked to Taeyong and cleared his throat. 

“Yes?” Taeyong paused his game and leaned back in his chair.

“Are these all the cat hybrids currently up for adoption?”

“Currently, yeah. We do have a couple more who are nearly ready, but we can’t at this time recommend they be cleared for adoption yet.”

“Can I see them?”

“Why?”

“To be honest, I don’t think Xuxi will get along with any of these kittens.”

Taeyong chuckled, amusement glimmering in his eyes. “Then I guess you’ll have to be patient. Come back in a couple weeks. Some of the kittens may be ready by then.”

“Weeks?” Kun's brow furrowed as he imagined Xuxi pining for that long.

“Weeks,” Taeyong confirmed. “We’ll email you the profiles you have in your hand currently, in case you want to take a closer look and think some more about it.” He stood, and it was clear that their meeting was over. Kun stood, too, hastily handing the tablet back over to Taeyong when he reached a hand out for it. “I’ll ask Yeri to set up another time for you to come in.”

“That would be great, thank you,” Kun murmured, a little stunned by how quickly Taeyong had dismissed him. But he was grateful he’d be able to follow up with this shelter either over email or in person in the coming weeks. It seemed they were very diligent and thorough with their processes and care.

Just then, a commotion rose up from the first floor. Kun heard a cry of pain and immediately his heart dropped, wondering who that was.

Taeyong paled and stiffened, muttering a quick, “excuse me,” before bolting out the door.

Kun's reflexes took a moment to catch up before he turned and followed the doctor at a jog, down the hall and stairs to the communal seating area, where he saw two burly staff hauling a struggling, snarling hybrid between them down the hall and away from the small and nervous crowd of hybrids gathered around something by the back corner. Yeri and a couple more staff were trying to persuade the crowd to back up, and gradually more and more people broke off from the group to go back to what they had been doing before. Taeyong cut through the thinning crowd like a hot knife through butter, and Kun kept pace with him at his heels, gasping and coming up short when he saw what -- or who -- was huddled in the corner.

Xuxi sat cross-legged on the ground cradling a much smaller hybrid to his chest, the hybrid’s face hidden in Xuxi’s neck. They were swimming in the giant black hoodie they were wearing, and Kun saw little black cat ears protruding from the top of the hybrid’s head. 

“Xuxi, what are you--?”

“They were pickin’ on him, Kun Ge!” Xuxi defended himself. 

“This is Xuxi?” Taeyong asked incredulously.

“Yeah.”

Taeyong shot Kun a look that he couldn’t quite decipher before turning back to the pair on the floor. “Xuxi, I need you to let go of Ten for me,” Taeyong coaxed, squatting down onto his haunches. “Thank you for helping him, but I need to see if he’s okay.”

“No!” Xuxi barked, holding the small hybrid tighter. “He’s scared.”

Kun intervened. “Xuxi, this is Dr. Lee. Please do what he says.”

Xuxi looked back and forth between them, suspicion making his lips curl and nostrils flare, but Kun nodded encouragingly, and eventually Xuxi subsided and released his arms around Ten’s body. Ten was trembling, though, and didn’t turn in Xuxi’s hold when the hold around him loosened.

“Ten, sweetie? Look at me,” Taeyong said gently.

Ten latched his arms around Xuxi’s neck and clung to him, making a little noise that sounded like the combination of a whimper and mewl. Xuxi held his palms out to his sides and stared at Kun as though to say, “See? I’m not doing anything.”

Taeyong tried again, his voice going high and lilting in pitch and tone. "Ten? Tennie..."

No response.

Ten's narrow shoulders shook, and Taeyong shifted back heavily onto his heels, sighing and rubbing his forehead fretfully. “All right. All right, then. Xuxi? Help me bring Ten back to his room, would you? Follow me.”

.

Xuxi carried Ten up the stairs and through the halls with little effort, following Taeyong, while Kun stayed a step behind them both, curious about the hybrid in Xuxi’s arms. 

Ten was quiet and still, his face hidden against Xuxi’s neck for most of the journey, but on the second floor landing when they paused so Xuxi could readjust his hold on him, Ten’s little face popped up, and he stared at Kun with glittering, jeweled eyes. Kun swallowed. Ten was breathtaking, his features reminding Kun of a mischievous fae’s. 

“Hello, there,” Kun tried, grinning when Ten gasped and hid his face again as they made their way to the third floor where the hybrids’ rooms were. Each of the dorm-like rooms appeared to fit a tall bunk bed, a set of dressers, and two desks, which reminded Kun of his room at college. Kun wondered how many of the hybrids were still in school.

Taeyong paused before the fifth door down the hall and turned back to Xuxi and Ten. “Ten, do you want Xuxi to bring you into your room, or do you want him to stay out here?”

In response, Ten tightened his arms around Xuxi’s shoulders, so Taeyong beckoned at Xuxi as he opened the door. He held a hand out to Kun, though, before Kun could enter behind them. “I’m sorry, but you’ll have to stay out here. He doesn’t know you yet.”

Kun’s heart sank, but he bit into his bottom lip and nodded. “I understand.”

“We’ll leave the door open so you can keep an eye on Xuxi.”

“Is Ten going to be okay?”

“He’ll be okay,” Taeyong said with a soft smile that made his eyes shine. “Thank you for asking.”

There was not much Kun could do after that. He watched from a distance, just outside the door, how Taeyong had Xuxi try to set Ten onto the bed, but Ten refused to relinquish his hold on the puppy, and so in the end Xuxi had to sit on the bed first, Ten straddling his lap. After some more coaxing and murmured encouragement from Taeyong, Ten finally slinked off of Xuxi and lay down on the mattress on his side, curled up and pouting sullenly as Taeyong pulled the tablet by Ten’s bed from the wall.

Taeyong hummed in thought as he examined the flickering images and graphs on the screen of the tablet, and Kun realized he must have drawn up readings on Ten's vitals. Nodding to himself, the doctor was asking Ten questions here and there, his voice soft and soothing. All the while, Ten’s tail flicked back and forth above the covers, brushing over Xuxi’s waist as the cat’s eyelids grew heavier and heavier with each blink. When the check-up was over, Taeyong came back out, and Xuxi followed. The doctor closed the door behind them.

“Is Ten sick?” Xuxi, his ears nearly flattened against his head, asked Taeyong.

“Something like that,” Taeyong said. 

“I hope he gets better soon,” Xuxi said earnestly, stepping around the doctor to nuzzle himself against Kun’s side for comfort. Kun pet his side in quiet praise and allowed Xuxi to fit himself against Kun’s back, like an overgrown bookbag.

“Me, too. He just needs a nap right now. Thank you for your help.” Taeyong smiled at Xuxi. The smile widened and turned somewhat beseeching when his gaze traveled to Kun’s. “Actually, what do you think about coming back to visit Ten next weekend? I’ve never...I’ve never seen him like that before with another hybrid.”

“You mean, with Xuxi?” Kun asked, his jaw falling open slightly. Beside him, Xuxi’s tail was already wagging vigorously at the idea.

“Yeah,” Taeyong said. The single word was loaded with significance. “I think there’s something there.”

Kun couldn’t deny Xuxi anything when he looked at Kun with those big, hopeful eyes, his hands clasped in pleading prayer, his tail going absolutely haywire. And he couldn’t deny that Ten intrigued him in a way that none of the other cat hybrids Taeyong had shown him in his office did. There was something overwhelmingly magnetic about Ten’s eyes. He could already imagine how Ten’s tiny, curled up body would fit in the corner of his couch, Xuxi spread out long and gangly beside him with just enough space for Kun to squeeze in next to them both. 

“We’d love to come back to see Ten,” Kun answered, and the promise of next weekend made him feel comfortably warm, the way a mug of tea felt in your hands, the way sitting for long hours in the sun bathed you in a light that lingered on your skin even after you had moved out of it and into the shadows. 

.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey there! quick update as of april 28 2020, i updated chapter 1 after i decided to continue this, so some things have changed!

“Ge, do you really think Ten will like our present?” Xuxi hugged the metallic gift bag in his lap closer to himself as he stared out of the passenger-side window at the buildings they passed. He anxiously jiggled his knees under the dashboard, and Kun reached over from the driver’s side to pat Xuxi’s arm. “Ge!" Xuxi shouted, alarmed, "hands on the wheel!”

“I think he might like it,” Kun chuckled, placing both hands back on the wheel at 10 and 2 like the responsible adult he was. “I’m just as curious as you are. Dr. Lee did say that Ten really likes soft and comfortable things, though, so I think we’re playing it safe.” Dr. Lee had also said a present that could help Ten get used to them even when they weren’t around -- something that carried scent well -- would be great, so Kun felt confident in their choice.

Kun eased them into the shelter’s parking lot and pulled them into an empty space while Xuxi chewed on his thumbnail. This morning, Xuxi had jogged in circles around Kun on their run in the park by the river, full of nervous energy and asking question after question about Ten, the shelter, when they’d be able to bring Ten home. Kun had only been able to provide half-answers, as he didn’t really know himself. He was just as curious as Xuxi was about Ten, just as excited to see him, and just as nervous that they’d encounter some roadblock that would keep Kun from being able to adopt again -- he just hid his nerves better, for Xuxi’s sake. All he knew was that all week, Taeyong had also been preparing Ten for their visit.

“I hope he likes pink,” Xuxi mumbled around his thumb. Kun put the car in park and turned off the engine, and they sat for a moment in silence.

“I think he’ll like it, Xuxi,” Kun said with a soft smile. “You did a good job in picking it out. Do you need a second, or--?”

Xuxi turned to him with an eager grin, his fingers already curled around the handle. “Let’s go!”

.

Ten was frightened, half hidden behind Taeyong as the doctor and hybrid approached the sitting area in the social worker’s office, where Kun and Xuxi were already squished together on one of the couches, the gift bag by Xuxi’s hip. When Ten sat on the couch across from them, glued to Taeyong’s side, his ears were pointed away, nearly flat against his black hair, and he fidgeted with his sleek, black tail in his hands. Kun’s heart felt heavy in his chest when he took in Ten’s thin hands and how the hoodie he was wearing swallowed him up. The way he curled in on his own body made him seem so tiny.

Xuxi leaned forward, his knees knocking into the edge of the low coffee table that separated them and his tail thumping behind him. “Remember me?” he asked excitedly. “We were here last weekend!”

Ten shrunk back, putting his face in Taeyong’s shoulder.

Xuxi frowned and retreated, glancing at Kun quickly with worry in his eyes. “Sorry…”

“It’s fine, Xuxi,” Kun assured him, squeezing his thigh with his hand. “We’re just getting to know each other. Last time, we didn’t get to introduce ourselves properly.”

“I can talk quieter,” Xuxi whispered.

Taeyong chuckled and eyed Xuxi with appreciation. “You’re sweet. Actually, that might be nice, because Ten isn’t a fan of loud noises, isn't that right?” He directed the question to Ten, who was still at his shoulder and nodded against him. His hands had moved from fidgeting with his tail to holding onto Taeyong’s bicep. “Do you want to say hi?”

“Hi,” Ten whispered, barely looking at them.

“Hi.” Kun leaned forward over the table and smiled. “I’m Kun. It’s nice to meet you, Ten.”

“Nice to meet you,” Ten mumbled. He peeked one eye out from behind Taeyong’s shoulder, his ear twitching in curiosity.

“I’m Xuxi!” Xuxi announced. “But you knew that already, because I told you last weekend. Are you feeling better today? Are you still sick?”

“I am not sick.” 

“So you’re feeling better!”

“I--” Ten swallowed around his words, hiding his face in Taeyong’s shoulder again, his ears flat. 

Taeyong scratched his fingers through Ten’s hair and encouraged him to sit up. “Why don’t you show them what you were working on, Ten?”

“It’s stupid,” Ten whined.

“It’s not. It’s amazing, and you worked really hard on it.”

Ten hesitated, but after a moment, he lifted his face from Taeyong’s shoulder and reached into the front pouch of his hoodie with one hand to bring out a spiral-bound notebook that seemed much too big to have been able to fit in the pocket. The other hand, Kun noticed, stayed at Taeyong’s elbow until the last possible moment, when Ten had to use both hands to flip open the notebook to a specific page. He held it to his chest, eyes darting up to meet Kun’s and then Xuxi’s as his ears turned pink. “It’s not done,” he said.

“Did you draw something?” Kun asked, sitting forward some more to show he was interested. Ten’s eyes flicked to his once again. “I’d love to see it.”

Ten turned the notebook around and looked down at the picture he had drawn, holding it to his chest like a shield. Both Kun and Xuxi gasped.

“Oh, wow. Ten, it’s beautiful.”

“Is it me?” Xuxi asked, his tail thumping wildly behind him on the couch. “It’s me, isn’t it?”

The likeness was there in the portrait, even though Ten had drawn Xuxi’s face in a geometric style, bold with lines and shading, all done with ink from a ballpoint pen. Kun thought it was incredible. “Can we take a closer look, Ten?”

Taeyong shared a secret smile with Kun then, glowing as Ten hesitantly scooched forward so that he could place his notebook onto the coffee table and slide it over. Kun picked it up with delicate fingers, careful not to smudge the ink in any way and holding it over his lap so that Xuxi could see it as well. “The detail is incredible,” Kun commented. “Xuxi, it looks just like you.”

“My drawings all look like stick figures,” Xuxi said. “You’re really talented, Ten.”

Ten did not seem to know what to do under all this praise and curled his fingers into the collar of his hoodie, bringing the fabric up to cover the bottom half of his face, which was pink. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

“When we’re in school together,” Xuxi continued, “you’ll have to be my partner in art class. Mr. Nakamoto isn’t a hard teacher or anything, but he’s always telling me to put more effort into my work. It’s not the effort; it’s my fingers!”

Even with his face half-covered, Kun could see how Ten paled at the word ‘school’. The kitten started shaking his head and retreating to his previous position behind Taeyong’s shoulder. “I can’t go to school,” Ten said in a high, thin voice. “Dr. Lee -- tell them.”

Taeyong curled his arm behind Ten’s narrow back, soothing the kitten. “You can tell them, too, if you want,” he encouraged Ten. “Remember how you practiced with Mr. Seo?”

“But I don’t want to.” Kun heard the words muffled against Taeyong’s back.

“I don’t want to keep speaking for you, Tennie,” Taeyong said. 

“I don’t mind,” Ten said, making Taeyong and Kun chuckle. Their quiet laughter drew Ten’s attention, and he lifted his face to sneak a glance at Kun. 

“Maybe you can tell us later,” Kun suggested kindly. He put the notebook back onto the coffee table. Even though he really wanted to flip through the pages to see Ten’s other drawings and sketches, he wouldn’t without Ten’s permission. He felt that Ten's drawing of Xuxi was a gift for them, and remembered their own. “Ten, we brought something for you. Would you like to see it?”

Ten perked up noticeably, his ears straightening and flicking towards Xuxi and Kun on the couch. “What did you bring?”

Kun let Xuxi do the honors. The gold gift bag crinkled as he brought it out from its very poor hiding spot beside his hip, presenting it with both hands with his arms stuck straight out in front of him. A smile cracked over his face and made his eyes shine with enthusiasm. “It’s here!” He put it on the table and slid it across, tongue nearly hanging out of his mouth as Ten reached out for it.

Ten lifted the bag into his arms. Kun was riveted, watching how he reacted. He could tell Ten was trying to hide his disappointment at how light the bag was -- perhaps he’d expected something denser, like a book? Now that Kun knew Ten liked to draw, his next present would definitely be art materials. But then Ten looked inside, and his eyes went round and liquid. He reached into the bag and brought out the fluffy pink blanket Xuxi had painstakingly rolled and re-rolled into a neat cylinder and tied around the center with a gold ribbon. The blanket was so fluffy that Ten’s hand disappeared into the fabric, which Kun knew was as soft as a cloud.

“Oh,” Ten breathed, his voice wobbling. He brought the bundle up to his face and inhaled. “It, um, smells like Xuxi.”

“That’s because I wrapped it! Or rolled it!” 

Ten’s face was pink again, the shade a light dusky rose just like the blanket. “It’s really nice. Thank you.”

Xuxi beamed. “You’re welcome.”

Ten smiled -- shy, nervous, and a little broken, but it was there, and the sight absolutely melted Kun’s heart. He was pretty sure he loved the kid already. 

Taeyong cleared his throat then, sharing another pointed glance with Kun. “Alright, you two keep chatting. Mr. Qian and I need to talk for a minute next door, okay?”

“Okay!” Xuxi agreed readily, while Ten looked to Taeyong with anxiety slowly creeping into his features. “Ten, don’t worry. I’ll be quiet and we can talk about what you want to talk about,” Xuxi offered. “Promise.”

Ten swallowed but nodded, cuddling the blanket like it was a stuffed toy, and Kun and Taeyong headed to the room next door, another office that was currently unoccupied. 

Taeyong shut the door behind them and gestured for Kun to take the seat in front of a desk, while Taeyong took the seat behind it. Photos lined the walls of a city Kun couldn’t identify. Taeyong must have noticed Kun trying to connect the skyline with a name. “It’s Chicago,” Taeyong said. “Mr. Seo splits time between this shelter and a shelter in Gangnam, but he’s originally from Chicago. This is his office.”

“He’s the social worker, right?”

“Right.” Taeyong nodded. “He’s been working with Ten since he got to the shelter. The kid’s been through a lot.”

This didn’t surprise Kun. A lot of hybrids had been mistreated by the system, but the commonality of it didn’t mean it sat well with him. “Are you able to tell me?”

“What we know is in his file. I wanted to give you a chance to look it over, ask questions. When Mr. Seo comes back next week, we can set you up with him for more conversation -- if you come back, that is.”

“Of course I’ll come back,” Kun said quickly. “I’m invested.”

Taeyong’s returning smile was laced with skepticism, but his tone was hopeful. “That’s good to hear.”

He handed Kun the tablet with Ten’s file pulled up, and Kun read over the information that was available to him, his hands clenching involuntarily as the words made him want to go back into the other room and hold Ten safe against his chest for as long as he'd let him. Ten had been in and out of five homes by the time he was 8, and this was followed by a stay in a shelter that had been shut down by the government after an investigation into abuse claims. The years between the ages of 10 and 13 were unaccounted for. At 14, Ten wound up back in the shelter system, and six months ago, Dr. Lee accepted his case. Mr. Seo described Ten as quiet until you got to know him, kindhearted, and attached. He recommended a peaceful home environment with lots of structure. Kun read through all of the information twice and then handed the tablet back over to Taeyong, who took it quietly.

Taeyong said, “He doesn’t need someone else who’s going to let him down.”

“I know,” Kun said. “And I won’t.”

Taeyong smiled again, and this time there was only hope. “Good.”

.


	3. Chapter 3

Whereas Xuxi had taken to Kun immediately upon Kun’s first visit to the shelter where Xuxi had been staying, Ten was much more cautious and discerning. The kitten adored Xuxi -- every weekend, Kun could barely get five minutes with them all together before Ten was asking if he could show Xuxi something he’d drawn in his room, or if they could go play outside, or if they could watch the movie that the other hybrids were watching in the common room. Kun and Taeyong often found Ten curled around one of Xuxi’s limbs, dozing, when it was time for them to go, while Xuxi did his best to be the comfiest body pillow.

It was great how well they were getting along, but it wasn’t great that Kun and Ten weren’t bonding in the same way. 

“I don’t want to force the issue…” Kun said hesitantly while he was seated in Mr. Seo’s office. Johnny was a tall, broad-shouldered man with the lushest set of chocolate brown locks Kun had ever seen, and when he smiled, he dazzled. 

“But at the same time, we can’t sign off on the adoption until we see a good relationship forming. You understand.” Johnny was seated behind his desk wearing a sweatshirt with the Chicago Bulls logo splashed across the front. Kun felt slightly overdressed in front of him in his dark jeans and fine wool sweater.

“It’s been over a month,” Kun said, chucking quietly to himself. “I think he’s avoiding me.”

“He asks all the time if you’re coming back, Mr. Qian,” Johnny assured him. “He looks forward to your visits, he’s just...not had a lot of great adult male figures in his life."

“Call me Kun, please.” They did this every weekend.

Johnny smiled. “Kun.”

Kun felt his cheeks heat and he looked down at his hands in his lap. He wasn’t generally interested in flirting, but Johnny was just so handsome. “Maybe we could go somewhere…” Kun thought aloud.

“Oh? Where were you thinking?”

Kun wasn’t sure yet. He thought about what he knew about Ten already. Ten had been incredibly shy at first, but he noticeably brightened around Xuxi now whenever they came to visit. Groups were hard for him to navigate, and as soon as it became too noisy somewhere, Ten tended to sadly distance himself from the scene. To Kun, it seemed Ten wanted to join and play and shout, but the ruckus made him shut down. 

“We could go to the aquarium,” Kun suggested hopefully.

Johnny brought a finger to his chin and stroked it in private contemplation. “That...that could work.”

Kun sat up straighter in his seat, eager to put his best foot forward. “We could go in the morning. It won’t be as crowded then. It’s quiet, low level lights, calming. Has he been before?”

“I’m not sure. You’ll have to ask him.”

“Do you think he’ll enjoy it?” Xuxi would no doubt want to immediately visit the tanks with the sharks, but Kun had a feeling Ten would much rather see the colorful jellyfish displays. Balancing the two of their energies would take some strategic planning and effort.

“Why don’t we run the idea by him now?” Johnny suggested, standing from behind his desk. He stretched his arms overhead with a groan as Kun stood with him. “If he agrees, a staff member will need to accompany you. We could plan for next weekend or something.”

“That’s great. If we go, we could split duties, each take one of them.”

“Am I going with you?” Johnny asked with a playful grin.

Kun stammered, ears hot. “Oh, I just assumed--” 

“Are you kidding? I’d love to go to the aquarium. The tunnel with the manta rays is the best!” Johnny’s enthusiasm for the potential field trip spilled out over his features as he came around his desk and threw an arm over Kun’s shoulder. He was smiling brilliantly, and Kun was just a little bit stunned. “Let’s go find the boys!”

.

Kun and Xuxi waded through the crowds to the aquarium’s entrance inside Lotte World Mall. Overhead, the ceiling had been painted cerulean, and light splashed over it in patterns to make it look like they were underwater. As people milled in and out of the entrance gates, Kun noticed Johnny and Ten standing to the side of the large, cavernous entrance, waiting, their silhouettes back-lit by the display window of the aquarium's gift shop behind them. Ten stood fused to the side of the social worker next to him, his small fingers pinched around the fabric of the v-neck sweater Johnny was wearing at his waist. The tops of Ten’s ears barely reached Johnny’s shoulders. With a shadow of a frown, Kun realized Ten’s tail was tucked away under his pants. Xuxi never hid any of his hybrid-features.

The puppy bounded up to Johnny and Ten as soon as he saw them with his arms in the air. Xuxi had rolled out of bed this morning, wolfed down breakfast, and jumped into his basketball team’s sweats that he usually wore to practice, and Kun had been unable to get him to change into anything else or  _ do  _ anything else because he had been so eager to get out of the apartment and to the aquarium. “Mr. Seo! Tennie!” 

“Hey, kid!” Johnny greeted with a wave.

The corners of Kun’s mouth lifted when Xuxi threw his long arms around Johnny. Then Xuxi turned to Ten and gave him a much gentler greeting, allowing Ten to tuck his face against Xuxi’s chest. Xuxi was already so familiar with them both that it felt a little stiff for Kun to stick his hand out to Johnny for a friendly handshake, but Johnny’s hand was warm, and his smile was genuine.

“Have you been waiting long?” Kun asked somewhat apologetically. “Parking was harder to find than I’d thought it would be.”

“Not at all. We just got here.”

Kun turned to Ten with a soft smile. “You excited to get inside, Ten?” 

The kitten was now holding onto Xuxi, their hands clasped. “Yes,” Ten said, staring into the entrance with a determined glint to his eye. 

Kun went to purchase their tickets, and they each filed in through the gates. There was something about aquariums that always made Kun feel like he’d entered the set of a sci-fi show, with the dark, echoing spaces and huge glowing tanks. When he was a kid, he used to love going from tank to tank, trying to memorize the scientific names of the creatures inside, learning hundreds of facts he’d been able to soak up as a kid but couldn’t recall at all now that he was an adult. He watched as Xuxi took Ten by the hand and walked him by the displays, pausing in front of the glass panes and playing ‘I Spy’ with each other when the animals seemed to be in hiding. 

Even though the mall had been crowded, there weren’t too many people inside the exhibits yet, so their small group was able to meander at their own pace in relative peace. Kun and Johnny hung back as the kids explored.

“When’s the last time you came to one of these?” Johnny asked Kun.

“High school, I think,” Kun said. “You? I thought you couldn’t wait to come! Why aren’t you up there zooming around with them?”

“I thought I’d keep the old man company,” Johnny laughed.

“If I’m old, what does that make you?”

“Hey!”

Johnny’s laughter made his eyes crinkle in the corners. Blue light from one of the tanks splashed across the side of his face and sharpened the edges of his profile. Kun swallowed and looked away, spotting Xuxi and Ten in front of a large display that imitated what could be found at a river’s edge. He was here for the kids; not for Johnny. “We’d better catch up. I think Xuxi’s trying to get through all this quickly so he can see the shark tank.”

“Clever boy.”

There were so many different exhibits. They moved through many ecosystems and environments -- rivers and lakes, freshwater and seawater, arctic and tropical. They spent the longest time in front of the penguin habitat, as Ten loved watching the birds play and dive, but after they watched two staff members climb into the enclosure to feed the birds, Xuxi wanted to move on. “I think the tunnel might be next!” he said, tugging on Ten’s hand.

“Oh, the tunnel!” Johnny trotted up to Xuxi excitedly as they walked away from the arctic enclosure. “My favorite part!”

“Me, too!” Xuxi’s tail was whipping back and forth so hard Kun decided he should walk behind him to form a safety barrier in case he barreled over any small children. Ten glanced behind his shoulder at Kun, his fingers at Xuxi’s elbow, his brows starting to scrunch in worry.

“You okay?” Kun asked quietly, holding his hand out to him just in case he wanted to take it. He did, exchanging Xuxi for Kun, and even though Kun knew it was because Ten was nervous and seeking comfort, he felt his heart flutter a little at the thought that he could be the one to provide it.

“What’s the tunnel?” Ten asked.

“You can walk through it like you’re underwater,” Kun explained, squeezing Ten’s hand gently. He was careful not to do anything that might overstep Ten’s boundaries. “There’s water and fish and other animals all around. It’s not dark, though. It’s light. You can see everything.”

He saw Ten gulp and clench his jaw. “Okay,” Ten said.

This time his heart swelled. Ten was so precious, and so brave, in his own way. He squeezed his hand again as they neared the entrance to the popular exhibit, blue light spilling out into the dark room they would be leaving. The rounded archway was stark against the light, and Kun could see through it into the underwater world inside the tunnel; it was like looking into another dimension. 

Johnny paused, looking back at Kun and raising an eyebrow in question at him. Kun nodded for him and Xuxi to go ahead, and they did, skipping into the tunnel and immediately  _ oohing _ and  _ aahing _ at the fish swimming by their heads. Kun began to step through the archway too, but was stopped and tugged back when Ten froze.

“Tennie?”

Ten was staring up at the rounded ceiling of the tunnel, where a huge manta ray was floating past, its wingspan so large that for a moment, it blocked the light and threw them both into shadow. His ears were flat against his head. 

“Tennie? What’s wrong?” Kun was beside him in an instant, Ten’s small hand in his. “Tennie?”

Ten looked at him and tears started to fill his eyes. “I don’t want to,” Ten whispered in a shaking voice. “I don’t want to, please. I don’t want to.”

It was like the crystal chandelier of his heart had shattered on the ground. Kun felt his own eyes well up but breathed in and out slowly to keep his emotions at bay. “We don’t have to go through the tunnel, Tennie. We can find another way around.”

Ten nodded, sniffling, and Kun immediately led them away from the tunnel. He saw that Johnny and Xuxi were already through to the other side, and motioned at them to go on. Though Johnny looked concerned, he also nodded in understanding. Kun and Ten would catch up to them. 

Once Kun asked a staff member for directions, it wasn’t that hard to circumvent the exhibit and wind up back in the same exhibit as Johnny and Xuxi, though Ten kept his eyes to the floor the whole time, quietly sniffling. They ended up in front of the largest tank in the aquarium, an entire wall of blue water before them, Xuxi and Johnny plastered to the glass as they watched the peaceful movements of the animals within. Ten was still withdrawn and quiet, so Kun sat Ten down on one of the benches and squatted before him so that he could look at his face.

He saw that Ten's nose was wet and his cheeks shiny. If they hadn’t been in the half-light of the exhibit, Kun was certain his skin would be pink and ruddy. “Sweetie,” Kun whispered, not wanting to call attention to it since Ten was trying so hard to hide it. Maybe the aquarium hadn’t been a good idea, after all. “What’s wrong? Do you want to get out of here?” 

“I’m sorry,” Ten said, his shoulders hunched near his ears. “I’m sorry I didn’t want to go through the tunnel. I’m sorry we had to go another way. I’m sorry…”

“Oh, Ten, it’s okay…”

“But Xuxi and Mr. Seo...really wanted to do it…”

“So they did,” Kun said. “But you don’t have to do everything they want to do. Or want everything they want. I’m sorry. It was my idea to come to the aquarium. Maybe we shouldn’t have come here.”

“No!” 

Kun blinked at Ten, whose eyes were wide and staring, both of them startled by the sudden outburst. Then, Ten started to cry quietly again with his face buried in his hands. Kun rose, sitting on the bench next to him and letting the kitten curl into his side as he looped an arm around his thin shoulders.

“I mean, I liked it,” Ten mumbled when they were settled. “It was fun except for that part. Will you -- will you and Xuxi still come back next weekend?”

“To see you? Yes. To the aquarium? Probably not.” Ten’s ears flickered as the kitten curled closer, and Kun found himself carding his fingers through Ten’s hair carefully. “There, there,” he said. “You’re okay. We’re okay. I’ll come back. I’ll definitely come back for you. I promise.”

.

It was hard to part ways in the parking lot of the mall, but after a tearful goodbye and more promises to see each other next weekend, Kun and Xuxi were on the road back home. Xuxi and Ten had decided to get matching stuffed penguins from the gift shop as souvenirs. Xuxi wasn't usually much for stuffed animals, but now he sat with it in his lap in the passenger seat, hugging it as carefully as though it were the real thing.

"Did you have fun today, pup?" Kun asked.

"Mmhm," Xuxi nodded, his smile lazy and satisfied. "Tennie's the best. And so is Mr. Seo. Did you know he's  _ met _ Michael Jordan?"

"Really?"

"Yup. And he said we have to try Chicago-style pizza someday."

"I'll put it on the list."

"I didn't know Tennie would be scared of the tunnel," Xuxi said, flopping back into his seat and sighing. "If I'd known, I wouldn't have run ahead with Mr. Seo like that, but I'm glad he was okay, in the end."

Kun grinned fondly. Xuxi was probably the best teenager who ever teenage'd. "You're sweet, Xuxi. Yeah, he got a little scared, but we figured it out."

"When can he come home with us?" Xuxi asked suddenly. He turned to look at Kun with imploring eyes, and Kun almost drove them up the pavement in surprise. He corrected the car smoothly, clearing his throat.

"Soon, I hope," Kun said. "Really soon."

.


	4. Chapter 4

Kun tripped over his own feet and nearly crashed into the wall when Xuxi appeared suddenly in the kitchen, took him by the hand, and dragged him toward his bedroom.

“Xuxi, the eggs will—”

“I cleaned my room this morning!” Xuxi announced. “You said Mr. Seo and Mr. Lee are coming today with Tennie and that I had to clean my room, so I woke up extra early and put away all my things. Come see!”

Kun could already smell the eggs burning in the pan from the kitchen and resigned himself to preparing a new breakfast for them both. Taeyong, Johnny, and Ten weren’t due for their visit until later in the afternoon, so he certainly had time to clean up and feed himself and Xuxi. He actually hadn’t been expecting Xuxi to wake up so early on a Saturday, but he chuckled to himself seeing Xuxi’s excitement and energy at the thought of Ten visiting their apartment.

Hopefully, their home would be Ten’s future home. The home visit was one of the last steps to Ten’s adoption process, after months of background checks, interviews, and visits to the shelter. And it had to go perfectly.

Xuxi pushed the door to his bedroom wide open and flung his arms wide. “Ta-da!” he announced, beaming at Kun with hope and pride.

Kun reached up to ruffle Xuxi’s hair as he took in the state of the room. Just last night, Kun had nagged Xuxi about the clothes and papers strewn about the place, but now it was spotless and organized. He waltzed into the room and opened the closet door to check that Xuxi hadn’t simply hidden his mess inside and was pleasantly surprised to find that clothes were on hangers and hats were on hooks. Everything in its place. “Wow, I can see that the rug is still blue!” Kun teased.

“Ha ha,” Xuxi laughed, trying to sound sarcastic but failing, barely able to contain his good humor and sincerity. “It wasn’t that messy before! Now it’s just tidy. Do you think Tennie will want the top bunk or the bottom bunk?”

“I think we should let him choose when he gets here,” Kun said, admiring the bunk begs they'd built together a couple of days ago after school and pushed into the corner of the bedroom. “You did a really good job cleaning up, Xuxi. Thank you.”

Xuxi’s tail wagged behind him so hard Kun could feel it kicking up a light breeze. “I emptied out one of the drawers for Tennie, too. For his things. Because it’s gonna be his room, too.”

“Can I see?”

Xuxi nodded and took Kun’s hand again, bringing him over to the dresser under the window. He pulled open the top drawer and waggled his fingers over it as embellishment. 

Kun didn’t know why looking down at the empty drawer made his breath stutter in his lungs, made his eyes well up. Perhaps because the emptiness was proof that they were waiting for Ten to fill the space they had made for him in their hearts. 

He closed the drawer and wiped at his eyes gingerly, thinking he could hide the tears from Xuxi and laughing quietly when he realized Xuxi had already noticed them. Xuxi whimpered and threw his arms around Kun’s shoulders and tucked his head into Kun’s neck. He had to curve down awkwardly in order to fit, but the hug gave Kun comfort, and he patted and rubbed Xuxi’s back in thanks. 

“These are happy tears,” Kun promised. “I can’t wait for Ten to officially be a part of our family.”

“Me, too,” Xuxi said, sighing contentedly. “I'm hungry. What’s for breakfast, Ge?”

.

Since Xuxi had woken up early to clean his room, Kun and Xuxi found themselves with a couple hours of free time after a filling breakfast of refried fried rice, and Kun suggested they bake cookies for their visitors this afternoon. Xuxi had wholeheartedly agreed.

A little under an hour later, the scent of brown sugar, butter, and vanilla filled the apartment as Kun washed up the dishes and mixing bowls in the sink and Xuxi wiped down the counters. Pop music played from Kun’s phone balanced precariously on top of the drying rack, and Kun could not stop smiling.

It was finally happening. Ten was coming over to spend the weekend with the Qian duo and assuming everything went well, the next step would be to sign the adoption papers. Their family of two would grow to three.

Kun had always wanted to be a parent. He'd never really dreamed about one day finding a perfect partner but he'd  _ always  _ dreamed about raising a kid or two. Having a co-parent would be lovely but Kun knew he could do a great job on his own. And as time went on and his luck and interest with dating and relationships dwindled, he'd started accepting that he'd probably have to. Originally he'd visited Xuxi's old shelter to meet the babies—kids still in elementary school or even younger—but then he'd met Xuxi, and his decision was made for him. 

He thought now that he couldn't have made a better decision. Most of the time, it really felt like Xuxi had picked Kun, and Kun now had the special privilege of being around while the puppy grew up.

Xuxi was singing along to the tune of the song playing from Kun's phone, dancing on his toes, the picture of happiness. “I can’t wait to play video games with Tennie!” he said dreamily, skipping toward the oven and turning on the oven light. He crouched down in front of the door to peer inside through the small window. “I hope he likes  _ The Last of Us. _ ”

Kun shut off the sink and wiped his hands on a dish rag, sighing as he thought about how Xuxi was always shouting through his headset and at the TV during the games he played. He was pretty sure  _ The Last of Us _ involved zombies and had a feeling Ten wouldn’t enjoy it as much as Xuxi did. “Remember he might not like the same kinds of video games as you, Xuxi.”

Xuxi’s tail thumped on the floor. “I know! And that’s okay! But he said that he never gets to play the games at the shelter because the other kids hog them all the time so I just want him to be able to try it…”

“That’s very thoughtful of you.”

Xuxi grinned at him, lopsided and bashful. “When are they gonna be here?” Xuxi asked for the tenth time so far today.

“In about half an hour.”

“That’s thirty minutes!” Xuxi’s eyes widened and he bolted up ramrod straight. “I have to get ready!”

Kun shook his head and chuckled to himself as he watched his kid stumble out of the kitchen and into his room. When Xuxi accidentally slammed the door behind him in his haste, a muffled “sorry!” passed through his door. Kun knew better than to follow him when a closed door meant privacy, but he couldn’t help himself from calling out, “Do you need any help in there?”

“No!” Xuxi shouted. “I’m good, Ge!”

“What are you doing?”

“Just changing!”

“Okay, well, come out soon so we can try the cookies before they get here.”

“Okay!”

Kun laughed again, charmed by Xuxi’s enthusiasm. Xuxi would be a great brother to Ten. He already  _ was  _ a great brother to him. And Kun only wanted to be a great father to the boys in turn.

As the time neared for Taeyong, Johnny, and Ten to arrive, Kun’s apprehension about the visit and worries about being a good caretaker and parent began to tighten like a knot in his stomach. It wasn't unfamiliar, as he'd faced similar thoughts during Xuxi's adoption process, but now he felt like he had more to lose. He could handle disappointment himself if things didn't work out for some reason, but he didn't want to disappoint Xuxi. What if Ten didn’t like the apartment? What if Ten wanted his own room? What if Kun’s cooking wasn’t to Ten’s liking? 

What if Kun wasn’t enough?

He mindlessly cleaned the kitchen as the thoughts and doubts filled his mind, trying to keep them at bay by rearranging all the mugs in their cabinet so that all the handles were facing the exact same direction, and then Xuxi was buzzing their guests in before Kun even registered that the doorbell was ringing. Xuxi had changed into a nice blue shirt that buttoned up and jeans without any holes in them, claiming he wanted to make a “good impression” on the doctor and social worker, even though, as Kun reminded him, they already knew him well.

“Yeah, but now they’re bringing Ten and I want them to see how good of a brother and role model I can be to him!” he’d exclaimed.

Kun had just smiled and asked him to wash his hands as they were dotted in melted chocolate from the two cookies they had gobbled up at the counter, the treats still warm from the oven.

Now, Kun heard Taeyong’s voice at the door as he put away his apron on a hook by the stove. His nerves were tingling, on edge, walking the line between excitement and anxiety. But he took a couple of slow, deep breaths to get a hold of himself, and it helped to chase away the skittering feeling in his belly.

“Wow, your home is so nice, Xuxi,” Taeyong was saying.

“You can put your shoes here,” Xuxi encouraged. When Kun rounded the corner he saw Xuxi squatting by their shoe rack, organizing Taeyong’s and Johnny’s shoes for them.

“You don’t have to do that — ” Johnny started, but Xuxi was already done and bounding back up.

Xuxi craned his neck to peer between their shoulders, his tail going absolutely haywire. “Tennie? Tennie! Come inside!”

“Kun,” Johnny greeted warmly, holding out his arms and stepping over the threshold in his socks when he noticed Kun coming down the hall. 

Kun approached and greeted them both with a loose embrace, nose crinkling with his smile. “Johnny, Taeyong.” He grinned while Xuxi stepped out beyond the door to usher Ten inside. 

Ten’s eyes were huge and glittering, a kaleidoscope of greens and blues. On his cheeks were two spots of bright pink. He was swimming in a lavender colored sweater and leggings and took tiny, stiff steps into the apartment, looking straight ahead as though not daring to take in his surroundings. Clutched to his chest was a small daisy-print duffel bag that Kun assumed contained his belongings for the weekend.

“Tennie,” Kun breathed. “Sweetie, you okay?"

Ten nodded with a little squeak. When they made eye contact, Ten quickly ducked his gaze to his feet and hugged his bag closer to his body. "Hi, Mr. Qian," he whispered, his blush crawling down the back of his neck.

Kun's heart was floating somewhere above his head. Ten was here, and they were all going to be just fine.

"Welcome to your new home, Tennie,” Kun said.

.


	5. Chapter 5

After a quick tour of the Qian home, Kun, Taeyong, and Johnny gathered in the living room over a pot of freshly brewed jasmine tea while Xuxi dragged Ten into his room to help him get acquainted with the space. Kun, smiling sheepishly, could not help his fingers shaking a little bit as he poured the tea into mugs and handed them over to the others. Taeyong sighed when he sat on the couch next to Kun, and Johnny wandered over to the bookcase where Xuxi’s growing video game collection was slowly taking over Kun’s carefully curated collection of books on musicology like wildflowers in a field.

“How are you feeling about Ten’s visit?” Taeyong asked quietly, blowing gently on his tea to help it cool. 

“Good,” was Kun’s automatic response. A pause, and then he elaborated: “Good, and excited. And a little nervous. I want his experience to be a positive one.” He smiled with his hands cupped around his mug, noticing Johnny hunching before the bookcase to read the sideways titles of the volumes within. “I want him to love us.”

“I don’t think you have to worry about that. He already does,” Johnny said. 

A bubble of warmth unfurled within Kun’s chest like a flower loosening its petals in the sun. Ten and Xuxi had grown attached at the hip so quickly, but with Kun, the bond had taken much longer to build, and Kun thought it was all the more precious for the patience and effort that went into it. “And we love him.”

“Do you have any plans for the weekend?” Taeyong prompted. He leaned forward with his elbows over his knees, peering at Kun from over the lip of his mug with curiosity.

“Apparently Xuxi and Ten already talked about a new movie they want to watch, so we were planning on going out tonight to see it. Other than that, not really. I think we’ll just...hang out here and around the neighborhood.” Kun watched Taeyong for changes to his expression or other cues to how he felt about that response. Should Kun had planned more activities to fill the weekend? Were Taeyong and Johnny expecting something more educational? “Maybe we’ll all cook breakfast together tomorrow,” he added. “Xuxi likes helping out.”

Taeyong was unwavering in his smile, kind and light. “I’m sure the boys will have fun.”

The tension Kun hadn’t realized he’d been holding fell out of his belly, and he breathed out in relief, smiling, too. Laughing. “Yeah, I hope!”

They lingered, chatting about innocuous topics unrelated to the adoption process, like the anticipated change in weather over the weekend—thunderstorms on the horizon—and movies  _ they  _ wanted to watch when they could find the time. Soon enough, an hour had passed and the remaining tea in the teapot had gone cold. Kun was surprised when Taeyong and Johnny announced they should get going without drilling him with more questions about his parenting style and habits.

When he voiced this surprise at the front door, they laughed as they were stepping into their shoes.

“Kun, we’ve known you now for months,” Johnny said. “You already have all the emergency numbers in the email we sent you in case you need anything, and you have  _ our  _ numbers. We trust you.”

“And more importantly, Ten trusts you,” Taeyong said in a lower tone than usual, which Kun interpreted to mean, _ and if you do anything to break this trust, we will break you. _

Fair and valid, from Kun’s perspective. He nodded in understanding as the reins of anxiety and worry continued to loosen. They trusted him. They weren’t going to suddenly decide Kun and Xuxi weren’t worthy of Ten, unless something seriously questionable happened.

“Xuxi, Ten! Come out to say goodbye,” Kun called. 

At being beckoned, Ten and Xuxi peered their heads out of their room, and when Ten saw Taeyong and Johnny at the door, he rushed toward them with his arms outstretched. There was a small, tearful moment when Ten latched his arms around Johnny’s waist and needed to be coaxed to let go. 

“You’re gonna have so much fun, Tennie,” Kun heard Johnny whisper into Ten’s hair. “We’ll be back tomorrow night. You’re gonna love it here.”

.

Ten was a quiet addition to the household. He’d chosen the bottom bunk and tucked his duffel underneath the bed. He blushed when Xuxi showed him the empty drawer, asking timidly what he could put in it, and when Xuxi said, “Your stuff, of course!” Ten had chewed on his lips in thought for a whole minute before asking, “Can I fill it later?”

Kun patted him on the head and said he could. It was his now and it would always be.

Ten’s eyes widened in wonder at Kun’s response. “Always?”

“Always,” Kun said.

.

For most of the drive to the movie theater, Xuxi and Ten chatted in the backseat, Xuxi’s stories about being on the school basketball team punctuated by Ten’s quiet questions and noises of interest, by their shared laughter. 

It was good ambient noise. The kind of conversation Kun could imagine hearing in the mornings in the kitchen before school, filling up the quiet spaces in their apartment. There was a cozy warmth to it that felt both familiar and new. Kun glanced at the kids from time to time in the rear-view mirror, unable to temper the smile across his own face. He felt firmly that the three of them belonged together like this, as a family.

“Tennie,” Kun started when Xuxi’s last story ended, “do you like going to the movies?”

“Mmhm,” Ten hummed, hands gripped around the belt strapped across his chest. “Unless it’s very loud. Or scary. But I think this movie will be okay.”

“Don’t worry! If it’s scary, I’ll be right next to you,” Xuxi offered. 

Ten beamed at him. Xuxi beamed right back. Kun’s heart swelled.

. 

The theater was half-full when they arrived, and they were able to snag three seats in the middle section a couple of rows back from the top. Ten sat between Xuxi and Kun. The seats were wide, cushioned, and gave the option to recline until almost completely horizontal, and between pairs of seats were small tables that hovered over the armrests. Ten and Xuxi shared theirs, while Kun was left the odd one out. He didn’t mind, especially since the seat on the other side of him was empty.

Ten leaned over the armrest to read the menu Xuxi held in his lap, and Kun was reminded of a curious kitten peeking its head out of a box. The seats were so large that Ten could curl up into a ball on the cushion and still have space left over for multiple pillows. 

“Let’s get the pizza to share!” Xuxi was suggesting excitedly, his voice just above a whisper in the dimmed theater. “What do you like? Pepperoni? Corn?”

Ten pressed his cheek into Xuxi’s shoulder. “Pepperoni is good,” he said. 

“Don’t forget to order something to drink, too,” Kun reminded them, eyeing the fried chicken sandwich on the menu himself. 

“Can I get Coke?”

It took a second for Kun to register that Ten was asking him directly. He looked over at the boy, his knees tucked up near his belly, peering over his shoulder at Kun with a tiny pout on his face. His black kitty ears flicked in anticipation.

“Of course you can,” Kun said.

“Even though it’s after five?” Ten asked. “Dr. Lee says we shouldn’t drink it at night because there’s caffeine.”

“Well, I might feel differently if it were a school night,” Kun explained. “But it’s the weekend, and it’s okay to treat ourselves every once in a while, right?”

Ten’s smile was slow and careful, filling with subdued glee. “Right,” he nodded.

.

After the movie, Kun had originally hoped to take a walk around the block to check out the shops in the area, but one look at the dark sky filling with dense clouds above them had him piling his boys into the car. It was late, anyway, so the stores would be closing soon. He started the car and drove them out of the lot, easing into traffic.

“Can we come back so I can show Tennie the bookstore?” Xuxi asked from the backseat. 

“Oh, definitely. Maybe even next weekend? What do you think, Tennie?” Kun glanced into the rear-view mirror when Ten remained quiet and saw him looking out of the window towards the sky, his ears tilted back, his fingers pressed against the cool glass. He must be worried about the storm. Kun frowned. “Ten?”

Ten startled with a small gasp and sank back into his seat, clutching at his seatbelt. “Yes?”

“Would you like to come back next weekend?” Kun asked gently.

Ten nodded emphatically.

“Well, when you officially live with us, we can go to the movies all the time!” Xuxi crowed. His infectious laughter caught on, and soon Ten was giggling, and Kun was chuckling to himself in the front. “I can’t wait. You’ll bring all your stuff over! And we can share!”

“I don’t really have a lot of stuff,” Ten said.

“That’s okay,” Xuxi exclaimed. “Kun Ge will buy you more things!”

Kun protested with a laugh. “Hey! I’m not made of money, you know.”

“He gives me chores to do but I can teach you how to get him on your side for everything,” Xuxi said conspiratorially, cupping a hand over his mouth and leaning toward Ten. “He’s a softie.”

Kun grinned and didn’t deny what Xuxi was saying. He was a softie for his boys, after all.

.

Kun barely had to do anything when they got back home. Xuxi took so much pride in being a good brother that he walked Ten through all the things he needed to know to get ready for bed. How to turn the shower on and finagle the knob so that the water temperature was just right. Where the fluffy towels were. Where to store his toothbrush. What books he could borrow from the case in the living room if he wanted to read in bed. Kun fixed them a nighttime snack of sliced apples and assured Ten he didn’t have to finish his small portion of them if he didn’t want to after seeing the distress that flashed across his face, and Xuxi gobbled up their leftovers.

The boys kept to their room—Kun couldn’t help but think of it as  _ their  _ room, already—as Kun wound down for the night as well. After his shower, he put the clean dishes away into the cabinets and double checked the fridge to make sure they had what they needed to make a breakfast spread together in the morning. Ten had requested waffles.

Satisfied with their collection of ingredients, Kun stopped by their door on his way to his own room, leaning against the jamb and smiling softly at the scene he discovered within. Xuxi and Ten were squeezed into the corner where the bottom bunk met the wall, Xuxi’s tablet atop his thighs as he flipped through photos on its screen. Ten, bundled up in one of Xuxi's hoodies so that he was swimming in soft fabric, was curled against him and hugging his knees to his chest, his tail wrapped around Xuxi’s waist. 

“And this is Hendery!” Xuxi said, pointing at someone in the photo as he continued his train of thought. “You’ll meet him. He’s  _ so  _ funny and he’s my best friend. He’s really, really nice.”

“What if your friends don’t like me?” Ten asked.

“They will! What’s not to like?” Xuxi huffed indignantly, as though offended by the idea. “You’re super likable!”

Ten rubbed his cheek against Xuxi’s shoulder and flushed, and Kun cleared his throat at the doorway to announce his presence. 

“Came to say goodnight, boys,” Kun said. “Remember, lights out at 11.”

“But we’re not tired!” Xuxi protested, yawning immediately after. Ten giggled.

“You want to get up in time for breakfast, right?” Kun reminded them both in a teasing tone. He tapped his finger against his chin in thought. “I seem to remember something about waffles and chocolate…”

Ten’s eyes flashed in excitement. “That’s what I wanted!”

“And that’s what you’ll get,” Kun promised. “Goodnight.”

Xuxi waved his hand in acknowledgment. "Goodnight, Kun Ge," he said.

“Goodnight,” Ten murmured shyly. His tail flicked over Xuxi’s waist. He seemed to want to say something more, so Kun waited, watching the cloud of internal conflict pass through Ten’s eyes. Ten scooted off the bed and stood, padding toward Kun with his tail in his fingers. When he threw his arms around Kun’s middle suddenly, Kun choked up, stunned and overwhelmed.

Ten hid his face in Kun’s chest. He smelled like citrus from the body wash they'd all used. “I really like it here,” he whispered.

Kun allowed himself to breathe again and curved his hand over the back of Ten’s head, cradling him. “We really like you here, too,” Kun said in a voice wavering and thick with emotion. 

Ten rose up onto his toes and kissed Kun on the cheek. The action was so quick that Kun wondered if he'd imagined it. He cupped his hand over his cheek as  Ten skittered back to Xuxi’s side on the bed where he resolutely did not look at Kun again, and Kun smiled, feeling fond, and devoted, and loved. 

He carried these feelings with him to bed and as he fell into a light, dreamless sleep.

.


	6. Chapter 6

Kun snapped awake at a loud clap of thunder that shook his bedroom windows. A bright flash of lightning followed that threw long shadows throughout his room, and as Kun’s heart settled into a more comfortable rhythm in his chest, he understood that what had sounded like loud, raucous applause in his dream was actually rain drumming hard against the glass beyond his half-closed curtains. The wind howled outside. He checked his phone for the time. 2:23 AM.

Groaning, he rolled around in bed to find a comfortable position under the covers and tried to go back to sleep. After five minutes of this (though it felt like an hour had passed), another sudden clap of thunder rattled the walls. 

Down the hall or outside or somewhere in the building, something thumped. 

Kun sat up, noticing groggily that he’d left his door open.

Since he was awake, he might as well go check on the boys. He remembered how Ten had watched the sky anxiously during their drive home and hoped he would find him sleeping peacefully in the bottom bunk under a pile of blankets. Not bothering to stifle a huge yawn that he felt in his body down to his toes, Kun stepped out of bed and rocked himself onto his feet.

He scrubbed at his face while he wobbled over to the boys’ room, leaving the lights off. When he reached their door, he eased it open as quietly as he could before poking his head inside.

He snickered to himself when he heard Xuxi’s snores. Here, just as in his bedroom, the rain was pounding against the windows in a steady beat, but he could hear Xuxi snoring even above that. His eyes roved over the bunk beds, noticing Xuxi’s bare feet poking out from the end of his blanket in the top bunk and a lump under the covers in the bottom bunk. 

Kun wandered closer, frowning slightly. Was Ten under there? He had the sudden urge to check, to fold back the covers to make sure the kitten wasn’t overheating. So he did, pulling back the covers slightly, slowly, so as not to bother Ten’s sleep.

But Ten wasn’t under the covers. What Kun had mistaken for Ten’s curled body was a twisted bundle of blankets and a pillow under the top duvet.

Kun’s immediate thought was that Ten had run away. In this weather. What if the thump he’d heard just moments ago was their front door shutting after Ten left through it?

Heart pounding in his chest, he ran to the front door and swung it wide open. Light from the hallway spilled across the entrance and blinded him momentarily. When his pupils had adjusted, he looked down either direction of the hall and saw no signs of a kitten hybrid making a great escape, and then he thought to examine their shoe rack, finding that Ten’s bright pink slides  _ and  _ tennis shoes were still here.

Ten wouldn’t leave without his shoes, right? Especially in the middle of a storm.

Kun fell back inside the apartment, letting the front door shut behind him. 

“Ten?” he called out, flicking on the lights in the kitchen, the lights in the living room, and the lights in the hallway. He half-expected, half-hoped that Ten’s little head would pop up from the couch, but there was still no sign of him.

The boys’ bedroom door creaked on its hinges, and Kun saw that Xuxi was hanging by the frame with a confused look on his face. “Ge? What’s wrong?”

“Xuxi, sorry. Did I wake you up?”

“No,” Xuxi said, rubbing at his eyes. “The thunder did…”

“Have you seen Ten, pup?” Kun asked as innocuously as he could, not wanting Xuxi to worry.

Xuxi’s frown sharpened as he peered behind him. “No? He’s just sleeping...Hey wait!” He disappeared into the room, and Kun followed him through the door. Xuxi was in Ten’s bunk, holding the mussed blankets in his arms. “He’s not here!”

“I think he might have gotten scared from the storm, Xuxi,” Kun explained in a steady voice when he saw Xuxi’s eyes rapidly filling with tears. “Will you help me look for him?”

Xuxi sniffled. “Of course.”

Xuxi’s usually-keen sense of smell was thrown off-balance by the storm outside, and so his nose wasn’t much help to them in the search, but together they checked under the bunks, in Xuxi’s closet, and even in the empty drawer that was Ten’s (Xuxi was quite sure Ten would be able to fold himself into a tiny ball to fit inside). Their search expanded into the kitchen, the bathroom, and the living room, but Ten was not in the bathtub, or under the breakfast bar, or hiding behind the couch. He was not tangled in any curtains by the windows, either.

With increasing distress building in his chest, Kun realized the only room they hadn’t checked yet was his own.

Xuxi trailed behind him into his room as another boom of thunder shook the very foundations of the building they were in, and Kun heard it—Ten’s tiny mewl of fright and anguish coming from inside Kun’s closet.

A sigh of relief fell from Kun’s lips. “Oh, kitten,” he murmured as he slid the closet door to the side, Xuxi’s chin hooked over his shoulder.

Ten was curled up on a nest he’d made for himself of Kun’s sweaters, the pink fluffy blanket Xuxi had gifted him wrapped around his shoulders, his face buried in its cloud. He was trembling slightly with his eyes squeezed shut tightly, and didn’t seem to have noticed that he’d been found.

“Ten, sweetheart,” Kun whispered. Xuxi whimpered next to him, clearly wanting to collapse onto his knees to cuddle up to Ten but holding himself back. Kun squatted on the floor and held his hand out over Ten’s ear. It flicked toward him, sensing him, and Ten’s eyes flew open with a gasp. “Tennie,” Kun said when Ten’s jeweled eyes met his. “Come out from here, sweetheart.”

Ten barreled into him with a cry, knocking Kun over onto his back and pushing the air out of his lungs. Ten’s knees dug into his gut uncomfortably but Kun still wrapped his arms around him, holding him and the blanket he’d somehow rolled himself inside of close as he sat up slowly. Xuxi quickly joined them on the floor, arms wrapped around them both while Ten pressed his wet face into Kun’s neck.

“You’re okay, it’s okay,” Kun soothed, rubbing Ten’s back. “Next time just wake me, or Xuxi. We love you.”

“Yeah, I’ll protect you from the storm, Tennie!” Xuxi promised.

“It’s  _ loud _ ,” Ten wailed, clutching at Kun tighter. “I didn’t want to bother you…”

“You’re not a bother,” Kun assured him. He kissed the top of Ten’s head. “You’re never a bother.  _ Nothing  _ you can do will bother me. I know it’s loud, but it’ll pass, sweetheart.” Another roll of thunder made Ten’s entire spine shiver from its base up to his skull, and Ten fell limp as a wet noodle in Kun’s arms when it passed with an exhausted sob. “C’mon, let’s get into bed,” Kun suggested, as much for the boys as for his back in the morning.

They climbed in together and settled under the covers with the pink blanket now adding another layer of warmth and protection, Ten between them clutching his tail in his hands. When Kun rested back against the pillows, Ten barreled into him again, but this time Kun was prepared for it and only looped his arm around Ten’s shaking shoulders. Xuxi rolled over to squish himself against them and buried his nose in Ten’s hair.

“Try to sleep boys, okay?” Kun whispered.

“Okay,” Xuxi said, and within moments he was out.

The rain drumming against the windows made Ten flinch with every pulse, and Kun could feel Ten's heart thrumming in his chest, against Kun’s. What Ten needed was a distraction.

“Would you like me to sing something?” Kun asked.

Ten’s head shook with his eager nod, so Kun began to sing, the melody low and pleasant. A lullaby from his home, a song he associated fondly with his own grandmother. As he sang the notes, he tried his best to emulate her delivery of the song, hoping he could fill Ten's heart with just as much love and peace and calm as she had for Kun.

Gradually, Ten’s trembling stopped and breathing evened, and his heart quietened in his chest. By the time Kun had finished the song twice, Ten was asleep.

.

The storm had passed halfway through the night, leaving a clear path for a cloudless sky in the morning, and Kun woke to Xuxi and Ten holding each other in their sleep. He slid out of bed without waking them, took care of most of his morning ritual, and then tiptoed into the kitchen to get started on breakfast.

He decided while brushing his teeth earlier that he’d make the waffle batter and let the boys sleep in for a little while longer. After the night they had, he was sure they were both very tired. He was tired, too, but not so much that he couldn’t prepare a treat for them.

As he measured out the ingredients for the batter, he hummed the lullaby he sang last night to Ten to himself, finding calm in the familiar melody. The dry ingredients came together in one bowl, and the wet in another, and then he added the wet to the dry, incorporating them. Lastly, he folded in the mini chocolate chips. 

When the batter was ready, he opened the fridge to pull out a small box of strawberries and yogurt. By now, he was well aware of Ten’s aversion to fresh fruit, but he'd been encouraged by Taeyong and Johnny to get him to try smoothies and juices. And Kun and Xuxi both loved a good breakfast smoothie.

After chopping up the washed strawberries, Kun turned to the bananas resting on the breakfast bar behind him and saw Ten at the edge of the living room, teetering back and forth as though considering whether to fully enter the room. His hair was like a nest atop his head, and his usually bright eyes were puffy from crying during the night. 

“Good morning,” Kun greeted gently.

“Good morning,” Ten parroted. He walked forward and pulled himself onto a stool at the breakfast bar. “Is that for the waffles?” he asked, pointing.

Kun looked to where he was pointing and nodded. “It’s the batter. I wanted to wait for you and Xuxi to wake to pour it into the waffle maker yourselves.” When he turned back, Ten was playing with his shirt sleeves, chewing his bottom lip between his teeth. Kun felt affection and warmth fill him up like he was a balloon. “How did you sleep, sweetheart?”

“Oh, um,” Ten fretted nervously, “okay, I guess. Thank you. And sorry.”

“For what?”

“For, um, for waking you up. And for not sleeping in the other bed.”

Kun sighed, tearing two bananas out from the bunch. “You don’t need to apologize for that, Tennie,” he assured him again. “This is going to be your home, and we love you. We want you to feel loved and safe here. If that means I have to buy a really big bed—” Kun spread his arms over his head exaggeratedly, a banana in either hand “—for us all to sleep in over the next couple of months, then I’m prepared to do that.”

Ten giggled with his tongue poking out between his teeth, cute and shy with his pink-tinged cheeks and bright eyes. “Okay,” he said, seeming to settle in the seat of the stool with more confidence. “Mr. Qian, you’re not going to make me eat those bananas, are you?”

“What, these?” Kun wiggled the bananas. “Not like this, no. I was going to make smoothies for me and Xuxi. I thought you might like to try.” He tempted, “It’s like melted ice cream!”

Ten’s eyebrows dipped in an expression that was distinctly unimpressed. He pursed his lips. “I know what a smoothie is, Mr. Qian,” he said.

Kun shrugged. “I’m making extra, so there will be a cup with your name on it,” he said, turning to the counter to begin peeling and chopping the bananas on the cutting board with the strawberries. When he was done with that task, he took out the blender from the cabinet underneath, prepared to ask Ten to go back to his room because it was about to get really loud in here.

Except then Ten asked, “When I come back next time, can I call you  _ Kun Ge _ like Xuxi does?”

And Kun’s kneecaps became jelly and he almost collapsed to the floor. Luckily, he caught himself by his hands on the counter, glancing behind his shoulder at Ten who was looking at him innocently, his tail swishing back and forth behind his head. 

“Of course, Tennie,” Kun said in a slightly strained voice. “You can call me that starting now, if you like.”

“Oh,” Ten chirped. “Okay!” He hopped off the stool and skipped around the breakfast bar to give Kun a hug. “Thanks, Kun Ge.”

Kun hugged him back, feeling his heart lock into place in his chest.

.

_ Two months later _

Kun could hear Xuxi clomping from down the hall as Kun washed the rice they’d be having for dinner tonight, and if he could hear him, then Ten, who was reading on the couch in the living room after completing his virtual classes for the day, could _definitely_ hear him. Almost as though on cue, Ten leapt from the couch and rushed to the door to open it, his tail waving back and forth in anticipation.

“Xuxi!” Ten cried happily.

“Tennie!” Xuxi’s voice carried from the elevators on their floor, his footfalls growing louder and quicker as he jogged the rest of the way to their apartment. Kun drained the water from the washed rice in the sink and put the pot under the faucet for a second rinse, listening for the usual clatter of the boys coming back inside, taking their shoes off, chattering about their days, putting away Xuxi’s bag.

Every weekday was pretty much like this. The excitement of seeing each other after school—physical for Xuxi, virtual for Ten—never seemed to dim, and Kun loved it. He loved helping them get ready in the mornings. He loved having a cup of coffee while Ten watched through the living room windows for the bus Xuxi was on to pull away from the curb. He loved how seriously Ten took his classes and how his cheeks were growing fuller as Kun plied him with home-cooked food. He loved weekends together, at the movies, shopping, going to Xuxi’s basketball games, or just hanging out around the apartment. He loved his family.

As he rinsed the rice a third time, Ten and Xuxi set up in the living room to do their homework. Ten usually finished first since his school day was shorter and he’d already gotten a head start, but he always sat with Xuxi until Xuxi was finished as well, sometimes doodling or drawing and sometimes helping Xuxi out. 

Ten soaked new information and knowledge up like a sponge. Kun hoped that by the next school year, he’d be ready to try an in-person class or two.

Kun set the rice to cook in the ricecooker and spun around so that he could admire his boys on the couch. Sat side by side, Ten was drawing in his sketchpad, and Xuxi was scratching his head at a passage he was reading from the textbook open on his lap. 

“Hey,” Kun said from the kitchen. Both Ten’s and Xuxi’s heads popped up, their gazes surprised and curious. Kun grinned. “I love you two.”

Xuxi groaned in exasperation, but his smile was as wide as his face. “Ge, you’re so cheesy. I love you, too…”

“I love you both so much,” Ten said quickly. His eyes were huge and round as though he was surprised at himself for saying it. His cheeks burned bright and pink as Xuxi threw his arm around his shoulders and hugged him in closer. 

Xuxi brought his other hand around to tickle Ten’s side. “Aw, Tennie!” 

Ten shrieked with happy laughter. To Kun, the sound filled him with joy, and love, and hope. 

Kun would have years of this. He couldn’t wait.

.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for sticking around and reading to the end <3

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Please share your comments and kudos, thank you! 
> 
> [my twitter](https://twitter.com/andnowforyaya) | [my cc](http://curiouscat.me/andnowforyaya)


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